国家地理 融化的北极正使一场新的冷战升温(8)

Days began and ended at the fishnets. The haul of iqalupik, arctic char¹, was so plentiful² that soon each tent was flanked by a small stand of stiff pink bodies, stuck tails first into deep drifts of snow. When we got hungry, we simply slipped an arm out the door and snagged a fish. Sometimes we cut it up and made soup. More often we ate it raw, slicing the char into our mouths. Frozen sushi, Marvin called it, fresh and cold, almost tasteless, with a note of steel from the knife blade.

每一天都以撒网开始和作结。打上来的鱼很多，很快每个帐篷都摆上了一排坚硬的粉色的躯体，尾巴埋进雪里。饿的时候我们只要把手伸出帐篷抓条鱼进来就行。有时候我们会把鱼切块炖汤。更多时候就是生吃，把红点鲑切成一片片的放进嘴里，马尔文管这个叫做冻寿司，很新鲜又冰凉，几乎无味，只有刀刃上一点钢铁的味道。

Beyond the nets, our hours vanished into a well of small tasks. In the day's few hours of weak sunlight, there were stoves to tend, ice to melt for drinking water, tents to relocate when the ice below them turned to slush. Snowmobiles regularly broke down in the unforgiving cold. At one point, a mother polar bear appeared near camp with two cubs³, which made the act of heading off alone to relieve oneself -- already dismal⁴ enough in the puckering⁵ cold -- an even uglier prospect⁶.

除了撒网，我们的时间都花在很多小事上。在白天几小时的微弱光线里，我们要照看好灶，化冰做饮用水，冰开始化的时候还要给帐篷换位置。在这种严寒的天气里，雪地车经常坏。有一次，一只北极熊母亲带了两只幼崽出现在帐篷附近，这让独自一人去大小解--在这种天气已经够可怕了--都变得危险。

During the mission I shared a tent with Marvin Atqittuq and his father, Jacob, who at 74 was one of Gjoa Haven's most celebrated⁷ hunters. Jacob Atqittuq had been born in an igloo and spoke⁸ only enough English to make occasional jokes. Over his lifetime he'd survived brutal⁹ winters and hungry bears, searing frostbite, boat accidents, even a season of famine that had killed many Inuit. Each morning he woke before us, and at the foot of the broad mattress¹⁰ we all shared, he cooked bannock, a sweet, doughy¹¹ bread, and softly sang old church hymns¹² in Inuktitut.

在这次任务中，我跟马尔文·阿提库和他的父亲雅各布共用一个帐篷，雅各布74岁时曾是约阿港最出名的猎手。雅各布·阿提库出生在一座爱斯基摩人的冰屋，他的英语水平只够他偶尔开开玩笑用。在他的一生中，他经历过严寒的冬天，饥饿的熊，刺骨的霜冻，船只事故，甚至是持续一整季的死了很多因纽特人的饥荒。每天早上他都醒的比我们早，他就在我们共用的宽大的床垫旁边做薄麦饼，那是一种甜甜的像面团一样的面包，然后温和的唱着因纽特人教堂里古老的颂歌。

1 char   

v.烧焦；使...燃烧成焦炭

参考例句：

• Without a drenching rain,the forest fire will char everything.如果没有一场透地雨，森林大火将烧尽一切。
• The immediate batch will require deodorization to char the protein material to facilitate removal in bleaching.脱臭烧焦的蛋白质原料易在脱色中去除。

2 plentiful   

adj.富裕的，丰富的

参考例句：

• Their family has a plentiful harvest this year.他们家今年又丰收了。
• Rainfall is plentiful in the area.这个地区雨量充足。

3 cubs   

n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lioness guarding her cubs 守护幼崽的母狮
• Lion cubs depend on their mother to feed them. 狮子的幼仔依靠母狮喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 dismal   

adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的

参考例句：

• That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
• My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

5 puckering   

v.（使某物）起褶子或皱纹( pucker的现在分词 )；小褶纹；小褶皱

参考例句：

• Puckering her lips, she replied, "You really are being silly! 苏小姐努嘴道：“你真不爽气！ 来自汉英文学 - 围城
• Astringent: Mouth-puckering sensation; the result of tannin being present in the wine. 麻辣：由于丹宁在葡萄酒中的作用而使喉间受到强烈刺激的感觉。 来自互联网

6 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

7 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

10 mattress   

n.床垫，床褥

参考例句：

• The straw mattress needs to be aired.草垫子该晾一晾了。
• The new mattress I bought sags in the middle.我买的新床垫中间陷了下去。

11 doughy   

adj.面团的，苍白的，半熟的；软弱无力

参考例句：

• The cake fell; it's a doughy mess. 蛋糕掉在地上，粘糊糊的一团。 来自互联网
• Soon the mixture was doughy. 很快，混合物成了面团状。 来自互联网

12 hymns   

n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌( hymn的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At first, they played the hymns and marches familiar to them. 起初他们只吹奏自己熟悉的赞美诗和进行曲。 来自英汉非文学 - 百科语料821
• I like singing hymns. 我喜欢唱圣歌。 来自辞典例句